Michael's Visit 1

Michael has arrived and been in Melbourne for 1 week now.  He and Laura and Jacob, Eli and Rachael have settled from their jetlag and have been spending time doing different things around Melbourne.  I was able to take a bit of time out of my hectic schedule to do some fun things last week.

Some adventures!

Healesville

 Jacket sharing with Jacob and Eli

 Up close with some Pelicans...just after this shot was taken, I was almost attacked!!

Bridge Photo (taken by Laura)

Playground

 Joy and Rachael in the slide

Vermont House

 Cheese sandwich time!!

Hair Braiding

Hugs with Michael and Rachael

Just a quick life update!

It's been ages since my last post and a lot has been happening...there are a few SOLID posts on the way, but here's a quick update in news lately.

1. My brother, Michael, and his family have touched down in Melbourne and will be staying with us for a few weeks.  I'm yet to see them, but looking forward to it.

2. Church is busy gearing up for Easter.  We've been practicing for our Easter Cantata and also for an Easter Sunday presentation.  We have a special outreach dinner for our International students this coming Friday.

3. We've had a new girl move into the sharehouse at Church and there are two more on the way, so that's busy getting them settled.

4. Had my first Japanese wedding on the weekend for Shuhei and Rie.  That was a lot of fun and it was cool to be involved by helping to organise the flowers.

5. Soccer preseason is over and our first game is this weekend! So, I'm getting excited for that!  It'll be great to get out on the pitch and play a hard game with the new team!  We've also moved training back to our homeground with new lights and a pristine pitch.

6. English classes have been keeping me SUPER BUSY with preparation and teaching, but I really enjoy them!  We've been having a lot of fun getting to know each other and I love spending time with the students.

7. Youth Group has been a cracker this term.  We've had a great time getting to know our Japanese young people and spending time with them.  David and I have really enjoyed our regular Bible Teaching time on Sunday mornings!

8. I've completed an ESL training course over the last few months - WIN...I've also been tutoring two students on a weekly basis.

9. PYV is keeping me busy with Volleyball last weekend, numerous council meetings, Winter Camp on the way and lots of important decisions to make.

10. I've been enjoying auditing an Old Testament lecture at PTC with some girls from Church.  It's been a great time studying the OT and spending time with the students.

That's pretty much everything that has been taking up time over the last month.  Every day flies by super quickly, but that's probably because I'm in a really rigid routine at the moment (which is good).

Also, good to note that I've been enjoying reading through 2 Samuel for myself, and listening to a sermon series from Mark Driscoll on Ruth.  It's been really encouraging, challenging and edifying!

That's it for me for now...more to come soon!

A recent pic of Lilly and me having some good times!

Trusting the Lord's Provision Part 2

So, I've been really struggling to sort out the really practical things of life lately.  The main one has been food.  Contrary to what everything thinks, it's not because I don't have any, and it's not because I don't want to eat.  It just seems to be that the day fills up so quickly and suddenly, it's the end of the day and I realise that all I've eaten was the apple I grabbed on the way out the door.

Well, let's just say that while I've been out and about, it really would have been simple enough to stop off somewhere and buy something.  But, I'm so conscious of every dollar I spend that I kept avoiding buying food out.

I know most of this stuff is just my own lack of discipline to have something prepared and ready to take with me through the day.  Nonetheless, the Lord has provided in ways I never would have imagined.  While I was away in Adelaide, two girls from Church snuck into my house, cooked up a whole bunch of stuff, filled the pantry and the fruit bowl and left numerous snacks and treats.  I was so surprised when I got home that I sat down and cried.

I am so thankful for the way they have blessed and honoured me, and I'm so thankful that the Lord provides me with people who actually love enough not just to say words, but to go out and do something.  I trust that God will bless them abundantly for their generosity.  And I'm really glad I've got people who will say the hard words to me when I need it!

Praise the Lord for His provision!

To Sir, with Love

So, I'd just like to take this moment to thank my Dad for some of the ways he's impacted my life:

1. Apple and cheese.  If it wasn't for my Dad, I would never know the delights of apple and cheese.  This amazing delicacy is now commonly (ok, maybe not commonly) shared among the Canterbury Crew.  I love the way the crispiness of the apple contrasts with the softness of the cheese.  So delicious.  I love the way I get apple to cheese ratio perfect.  My favourite apple and cheese story was when I was little and James and I were wrestling in the loungeroom, and he threw me into a chair and I got a blood nose.  We got sent to bed with no tea, but I woke up in the middle of the night and I was starving.  Dad let me come in his bed and eat apple and cheese.  My second favourite apple and cheese story was when we all had apple and cheese when Marcus lived at College.  I can't really remember what happened - just that it was a pleasant experience.

2. Never buying anything.  When I was little, I really wanted this toy pony.  I really really wanted it...not sure why...  My Dad told me, that if I got it, I wouldn't play with it as much as it was worth (I think it was $25)  I thought I would follow Scripture and be the 'persistent widow'.  Well, Dad ended up getting me the toy horse, and I remember having to force myself to play with it, because I was too proud to admit that he was right.  Now...I never buy ANYTHING!

3. Night walks.  I love night walks.  There's something in the fresh night air that just makes me feel all thrilled inside.  When we were  in America...7 years ago...Dad and I always went walking at night.  It was so exciting to see the night life and to enjoy the atmosphere of the different places.  I am really sad that I can't go walking at night by myself...if I ever get married, it will be good to go on night walks.

4. Research.  This is slightly linked with number 2 (never buying anything).  If my dad is ever going to spend money, he will always make sure he is getting the best thing.  He will spend weeks and months researching the product, prices and options for buying.  I'm exactly like that.  The only difference is, my Dad does the research and then he buys it...for me, I get my Dad to do the research, and I never end up buying it (see number 2).

5. Travelling.  My Dad loves to travel.  If he's not on a cruise around Canada, then he's planning his next cruise to New Zealand...I also love to travel.  I love to see different places and different cultures.  I love to get out and do something new.  I also like to make the most of my time travelling...which is why I never really count it as a holiday.  (Recent story to illustrate: We were in Tasmania for a holiday - see previous post - and we were planning our day.  We all agreed on an early start so we could pack as much in the day as possible.  As we said our goodnights, I said, 'So, 7 oclock then?'  To which the girls responded, '7 OCLOCK...more like 10oclock!!)  The main difference here between me and my Dad is that I an unable to travel as much as him due to lack of time/resources.

On the days when it all falls apart...

You are the reason he rises in the morning. (Isaiah 30:18)

You are the one he quiets with love. (Zephaniah 3:17)

You are the one he longs for. Not just likes but longs for. (Isaiah 30:18)

You are a child of God. (John 1:12)

You are an heir to the throne. (Galatians 4:7)

You are his workmanship. (Ephesians 2:10)

You are the only part of creation God breathed to life. (Genesis 2:7)

Thanks Jon: http://www.jonacuff.com/stuffchristianslike/2010/09/the-question-we-all-ask/

Trusting the Lord's Provision

Well the biggest thing that's going on at the moment is that I'm really learning what it means to trust the Lord's provision.  The biggest test comes in the form of a question: 'How long Oh Lord?'

It's easy to trust the Lord to provide what we need in the short term...maybe because in the short term, we never really have to wholly depend on the Lord (so we're never really trusting).  It's when it becomes a long term thing that we really have to depend on God's Providence.

So, I've recently dropped a little bit of work so that I can take up some other ministry opportunities at Church.  This has obviously affected my income a fair bit.  While I can look at my bank account now and easily trust that God will provide what I need...it's going to be when that gets lower and lower that it really becomes a question of whether I trust God, or whether I've just been trusting myself.

So I thought I'd blog about this little journey and see how the Lord provides and guides.

The Family (John MacArthur)

I was chatting with one Korean lady the other day about the difference between Church in Korea and Church at Canterbury.  She made, what I thought to be, a very interesting comment.  She said that in Korea, Church comes first and family second, and at Canterbury, Family comes first and Church second.

This got me thinking about the priorities for the family in the Church, and I read this interesting article by John MacArthur (http://www.gty.org/Resources/Articles/A175).

How Can We Rescue the Family?

Luke 9:61-62, Ex. 20:12, Prov. 22:6, Eph. 5:22, Gal. 6:10

July 29, 2009   |     Code: A175

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John MacArthur
Soccer, dance lessons, school activities—involvement options for families today seem to have no end. But how do all those “family” commitments affect local church ministry? Is it possible to put too much emphasis on the family?

Next time you visit your Christian bookstore, notice how many books are available on the family. What you’ll see is graphic evidence of the explosion of evangelicals’ interest in the family. You could say we’re obsessed with the family.

You might think people would be tired of hearing about the family, but that’s not the case. People regularly tell me they wish we would offer more material on the family. My series of messages on The Fulfilled Family is consistently one of the most popular topics on our radio broadcast.

With all the material available to help families, why are so many Christian families in trouble?

May I suggest that our preoccupation may be part of the problem? We have become so engrossed in the family itself that we are losing our perspective on why the family is important to God and where it really fits in His kingdom plan.

I don’t mean this as criticism of any of the valuable ministries that exist to help the family. Many of them fill a much-needed role, articulating biblical principles for family life. I thank God for them.

But not all teaching that claims to be pro-family is genuinely biblical. In fact, some of the popular ideas that have attached themselves to Christian pro-family movements are clearly a threat to the true purpose God designed for families.

It’s amazing how many Christians believe, for example, that the family is always a priority over ministry. I know parents who have bailed out of any form of Christian service, thinking extracurricular church activity is an automatic threat to the sanctity of the home. They have become so absorbed in family activities that they don’t have time to exercise their spiritual gifts. Several people have told me they don’t attend Sunday evening church services because they set that night aside for “family time.”

Those are revealing attitudes. Have we lost our sense of the family’s real mission? Could it be that our infatuation with the family has actually fostered a kind of self-indulgent diffidence toward our spiritual responsibilities?

The family is high on God’s list of priorities. The sheer volume of biblical teaching about family relationships demonstrates that. God wants children to honor their parents (Ex. 20:12), husbands to love their wives (Col. 3:19), wives to submit to their husbands (Eph. 5:22), and parents to train their children properly (Prov. 22:6). But Scripture never suggests that we should elevate the temporal family at the expense of God’s family. We dare not turn our backs on the kingdom for the sake of our families (Luke 9:61-62).

Christian families are not an end in themselves. They exist to further the work of the kingdom. They do this by being a testimony to the unredeemed and by showing hospitality and service to all, especially those who are of the household of faith (cf. Gal. 6:10).

Too many today see the family as a shelter exclusively for family members, a retreat from the world. They wall themselves in, even from the church. They concentrate on temporal, self-focused, self-gratifying concerns.

Study, for example, the trends in “Christian” family therapy. Today’s counselors seem to major on the externals—having date nights, affirming one another’s dignity, participating in a sport or a hobby together, or better sexual techniques. They make children the center of the family, stressing the importance of stability and privacy, well-organized and exciting family activities, and on and on.

There’s nothing wrong with most of those things—in their proper place. But we have emphasized them to the point of overkill, producing an almost narcissistic perspective. We assume that a mutual obsession with family members’ needs will hold the unit together.

All those things are external props; they will not rescue a falling family. They may even deflect a successful family to the path of failure.

Real help comes when we see that the family exists for a purpose outside itself. Our families are healthy only to the degree that they understand their primary function in this world is not to be fulfilled within themselves. True family solidarity is a by-product of together exalting Christ, obeying His word, and being spiritually vigorous.

The family that knows its spiritual and redemptive purpose does not need external props. It has a supernatural cohesion. Its members have no option but to stay together and build meaningful relationships, not for their own sakes, but because they are compelled by the highest of goals.

Put another way, people who understand that their family’s chief aim is to testify of Christ and His life-changing power have no option to get divorced, commit adultery, abuse one another, or otherwise self-destruct. Do you want to keep your children from rebelling? Begin by teaching them from the earliest age that the family’s most important calling is to exalt the name of Christ in the community by living in obedience to Him.

It is right that we strengthen our families. But let’s not attempt to do it with gimmicks or self-centered efforts. Let’s live not only for each other, but for the Lord. In living for Him, we will end up fulfilling one another. May God give our families a supernatural sense of their purpose, and may we be a testimony for Him in the midst of a hostile world and a needy church.